Fish Food

Deep Dive with Nikki “FloridaFISH” Cabus

1. Briefly describe your Consultis journey.

I started at Consultis just about a year ago after being recruited by long-time friend and current manager, Dana Ingram. It was the first company I had worked for in years that has been outside of the health and medical industries. Although my last company was in the staffing business as well, I was worried about switching over to IT. The only thing I knew about IT is that my dad is a Senior Systems Analyst for the City of West Palm Beach. Man, do I wish I had paid attention more when he spoke about work!

My second day on the job at Consultis, I attended the South Florida Technology Alliance’s Tech Talent Fest at Nova Southeastern University and two months later their Cinco de Mayo Golf Tournament at Jacaranda Golf Club. I fell in love!

I met multiple board members, sponsors, and volunteers for SFTA that seemed so passionate about the tech industry, which convinced me I wanted to get involved. That decision changed my Consultis journey in a huge way.

In just one year, I have become the SFTA’s Marketing Co-Chair on the Events Committee and met more talented and driven individuals than I can count. I am also happy to announce that I was officially voted in as a new Board Member for 2019.

Consultis is a strong partner for the SFTA and I am so proud to be a part of both organizations. Thank you, Consultis, for an eye-opening year. I’m looking forward to see where this journey with you all takes me next!

2. What do you love most about your job?

At Consultis, there is a culture of inclusion and teamwork. The management staff and owners make sure to include all team members in discussions about the company’s goals, areas of growth, and our part in the big picture. We all work together to make sure that everyone succeeds as collaboration allows for the creation of ideas and higher productivity overall. This is truly hard to find in a sales environment and even harder to find in management as employees often leave “company cultures” and not the company itself. I love every team member here and wish them the same success I want for myself. That’s what I love about my job!

3. What is your favorite thing to do in Palm Beach?

Being a mother (who really loves soccer), my favorite thing to do is spend time with my family at the soccer fields on the weekends. You could easily label me as the “Ultimate Soccer Mom.” It’s even on my LinkedIn profile! With both my children playing soccer, my husband being the coach, and me as the team manager, you could say we live for the game. Oh, and Barcelona is the best team of the Spanish league. Hands down.

4. What is your top piece of advice for clients, candidates, or those who are new to the staffing industry?

Focus on relationships – Whether you work for a staffing agency, use one during your personal job search, or collaborate with one for your talent needs at work, remember that everything comes down to one unwavering key element – the relationships you build with people. It’s just human nature that people will work with people they like.

Technology (specifically AI) is great for searching through a resume to find basic technical skills, job titles, and companies of employment, but what about personalities, culture-fits, and teamwork? A person who listens to you, works to understand your needs and wants, shares their time, and communicates often to build a true connection is developing a strong relationship. This is needed no matter how you are involved with the staffing industry.

A human relationship in staffing is essential.

5. One piece of life or career advice I’d give to a mentee:

Work smarter, not harder. We tend to think that because we put more time in, work nights, work weekends, and basically give up our personal lives for work that we are great employees. That’s not true one bit.

Make a daily plan for yourself and stick to it. Prioritize your day to get the most important tasks accomplished. I was once told by a very smart woman (my mom) that if you were to take your to-do list and just remove two low priority things each day, that nobody will die. Guess what, she was right. Multitasking isn’t always the best either. Trust me. Don’t overload, overwhelm, and overwork yourself. Take the time to refresh and recoup.